Sunday, 7 August 2011

Mega-tsunami

Amongst the various other startling images depicted in the Book of Revelation, the curious scene of a "great mountain, burning with fire" being thrown into the sea appears to be granted a certain significance. The Apocalypse uses recapitulation as a literary device to highlight areas of especial importance. The battle of Armageddon, for example, is referred to in several different places. The bizarre scene of a mountain being cast into the sea in Rev 8:8 is recapitulated again by the angel throwing a great millstone into the sea in Rev 18:21, connecting this event with the fall of "Babylon" - the ruling world-power in the eschatological age.

The second angel blew his trumpet, and something like a great mountain, burning with fire, was thrown into the sea, and a third of the sea became blood. (Rev 8:8)

But what could this scene represent? Various preterist scholars, such as D.E Aune, and more recently Elaine Pagels in her popular 2012 book Revelations, argue that this passage contains a description of the eruption of Vesuvius, which destroyed Pompeii in 79AD. But as leading Revelation academic G.K Beale points out, this particular volcanic eruption can not be the sole point of reference, as the verse in question is clearly based on chapter 51 of the Book of Jeremiah, which describes the casting down of “a burning mountain” and the destruction of Babylon in the sea:

“Behold, I am against you, O destroying mountain, declares the LORD, which destroys the whole earth; I will stretch out my hand against you, and roll you down from the crags, and make you a burnt mountain. No stone shall be taken from you for a corner and no stone for a foundation, but you shall be a perpetual waste, declares the LORD. “Set up a standard on the earth; blow the trumpet among the nations; prepare the nations for war against her...

(Jer 51:25-27)

“How Babylon is taken, the praise of the whole earth seized! How Babylon has become a horror among the nations! The sea has come up on Babylon; she is covered with its tumultuous waves.

(Jer 51:41-42)

Chapter 51 of the Book of Jeremiah then concludes with a passage which is alluded to again later in the Book of Revelation:

And Jeremiah said to Seraiah: “When you come to Babylon, see that you read all these words, and say, ‘O LORD, you have said concerning this place that you will cut it off, so that nothing shall dwell in it, neither man nor beast, and it shall be desolate forever.’ When you finish reading this book, tie a stone to it and cast it into the midst of the Euphrates, and say, ‘Thus shall Babylon sink, to rise no more, because of the disaster that I am bringing upon her, and they shall become exhausted.’”

(Jer 51:61-64)

Then a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone and threw it into the sea, saying, “So will Babylon the great city be thrown down with violence, and will be found no more"...

(Rev 18:21)

The majority of scholars thus recognise that the burning mountain being cast into the sea in the Apocalypse is the exact same event which is symbolised by the angel casting a millstone into the sea to signify how the eschatological world power "Babylon" is to be destroyed. As Beale states: "the burning mountain cast into the sea refers to the judgment of a wicked kingdom. This kingdom is to be identified as 'Babylon', 'the great city' of Revelation 11-18, which holds sway over the evil world system. (Beale, G.K. The Book of Revelation p476).So the "great mountain, burning with fire" is widely recognised by Revelation scholars as a description of a volcanic eruption.

But how could a volcano be thrown into the sea? And how would this bring about the fall of the ruling world empire at the end-time? I'll post a short extract from my book below:On the 12thof October 2000, the BBC's flagship documentary series Horizonaired a programme that was to cause a considerable amount of controversy in the world of geophysics. Subtitled "Mega-tsunami: Wave of Destruction", the documentary elaborated how the volcano Cumbre Vieja on the Canary island of La Palma poses an enormous risk to the eastern coastline of the Americas. The documentary was based on the combined research of S.N. Ward of the Institute of Geophysics and Planetary Physics at the University of California and S.J. Day of the Benfield Greig Hazard Research Centre at University College, London, who hoped to prove that Cumbre Vieja has the potential to cause one of the greatest natural disasters ever known to human civilisation. Ward and Day's research shows how the inside of Cumbre Vieja is honeycombed with fissures caused by the rising of molten magma heating and vaporizing water which then erodes the inside of the volcano. This phenomenon has severely weakened the internal structure of the volcano, making it extremely unstable. During its last eruption in 1949, the southern volcano caused a massive crack to appear, and the entire western portion of Cumbre Vieja slipped a few metres towards the Atlantic Ocean.
In 2001, Ward and Day put forward a scientific paper showing how that the entire western flank will eventually give way, possibly even during its next eruption; sending 500 thousand million tonnes of rock crashing into the ocean. Ward and Day's research, which took other examples of this phenomenon into account, suggested that the impact of this "lateral collapse" would generate a colossal wave – dubbed a "mega-tsunami", which could reach a local amplitude of between 650-1500 metres. This wave would then rapidly travel westwards reaching a speed of approximately 720kph. Although it would diminish in size by the time it made landfall on the eastern seaboard of America, it could still be as high as 50 metres (to give a sense of perspective, the statue of liberty is 93 metres tall), devastating everything in its wake up to 25km inland. In comparison with this projected scenario, the Indian Ocean tsunami that occurred on 26th December 2004, reached a height of only 24m at Bandeh Aceh – the region worst affected by the disaster, which was totally obliterated. If this event unfolds in the manner that Ward and Day have projected, then this "mega-tsunami" would be the greatest natural disaster in recorded history. (Unveiling the Apocalypse pp148-149)

As I detail in the book, there are many other prophecies which foretell a massive flood at the end-time that would destroy a major world power, and the political vacuum left in the wake of this event could lead to the rise to power of the Antichrist. This event (which according to Ward and Day is a matter of "when" not "if"), although confined to the east Coast of the Americas, would cause the economic collapse of the USA - sending it tumbling from the status of "super-power" to financial ruin. There would undoubtedly be various power struggles amongst the other various leading world powers to fill this political gap, and the rest of the world would be plunged into an economic depression. In Unveiling the Apocalypse, I argue that this could create similar conditions which led to the rise to power of Hitler in 1933, when the German populace, gripped by severe economic hardship, turned to a figure they believed would offer strong leadership in a time of turmoil. Will the downfall of America precede the ascension to power of the Antichrist?Without the protection offered by its chief ally, the state of Israel would surely become a prime target for the surrounding Arab nations, leading to a military invasion which could precipitate the battle of Armageddon...

14 comments:

I had seen the special about the Cumbre Vieja connection with a mega-tsunami and was especially concerned as I live in Boston. I believe that the "Babylon" pre-figured in the Bible is New York City. We are living in the most exciting time in history, prophecy fulfilling itself before our eyes and the Lord's return imminent!

Yes, I always thought that the imagery of the statue of liberty tied in with the idea of “Babylon” myself. It is after all modelled on the Masonic principles of “Fraternity, Equality and Liberty”, and the “light bearing” aspect is a little too close to the original light-bearer – Lucifer. I don’t want to sound anti-American however, because I’m absolutely not – America is one of the last bastions of the Christian faith. It’s just that like all Western nations, it has been deeply affected by the influences of Freemasonry and its secular ideals.I was only joking about moving from the east Coast. As I say in the book, this prediction seems to be tied in with a prophecy made by St. Patrick – that Ireland would be washed over by the sea seven years before the end-time to be spared from the horrors of the reign of the Antichrist. So this future disaster might actually be a blessing in disguise:These are the three prayers of Patrick, as they were delivered to us by the Hibernians, entreating that all should be received on the day of judgment, if we should repent even in the last days of our life.That he should not be shut up in hell. That barbarian nations should never have the rule over us. That no one shall conquer us, that is the Scots, before seven years previous to the day of judgment, because seven years before the judgment we shall be destroyed in the sea, this is the third. Unlike a lot of spurious prophecies in circulation, this stanza can be traced back to a definite source – which is one of the earliest documents concerning the life of St. Patrick. See Betham, W. (Ed) “Tírechán's Collections Concerning St. Patrick” Book of Armagh (Irish Antiquarian Researches. Vol. 2. Dublin: William Curry, Jun. and Co., 1827), pp348-402

I just found your reply...sorry !! yes, the Statue of Liberty, the Light-Bearer, very replete with meaning. I weep for my beloved America many times as it is so terribly tried right now by the forces of evil tearing at its very foundations. The Masonic aspect of the history of my country is troubling and certainly full with dire implications for our future, God help us.

The irony is that America has the highest percentage of those who still profess to believe in the Christian faith. Europe is in a far worse state of apostasy, and atheism is aggressively espoused by the intelligista here. I think we have some time to repent however... Interpreting the various biblical prophecies of the mega-tsunami threat in juxapostion with the private revelations of saints and mystics, I believe that although the verdict has already been decided, the hand of judgement is stayed until the fullness of God's people has been brought into the fold (see the Third Secret, where the flames of the angel's sword die out due to the intercession of Our Lady to allow for a period of penance). So these events shouldn't take place until after the Second Pentecost takes the gospel to the "ends of the earth" (Matt 24:14). Think of it as a stay of execution...So I wouldn't worry about the recent events at El Hierro in the Canary Islands just yet.

I am not afraid. I know this sounds nonsensical, but I am content with God's judgment. I believe that He sees America quite clearly and weighs us rightly. Jesus is the Lion of the tribe of Judah, Our King, and the Lord of lords. "Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him..." Job 13:15

There is actually a great depth of wisdom in these words. They remind me of an JSOT article by Staurt Lasine called "Bird's Eye and Worm's Eye Views of Justice in the Book of Job". The basic point was that man can never hope to comprehend the greater, all encompassing, "bird's eye" view of the universe which God has. We can only attempt to make sense of it through our limited "worm's eye" view of the cosmos, which can be skewed in the face of the philosophical problem of evil. But we can never know all the reactions out of each action in the world - this type of knowledge belongs to God alone. As such, we can only put our trust in His infinite wisdom during times of personal turmoil and understand that God's justice is perfect - each of us will be recompensed according to our works.

There seems to be quite a few people dreaming of this event... If you trawl through the com-box on the various posts related to this subject on this blog, you'll come across several others sharing their dream experiences. It appears that there are stronger and more widespread premonitions for major events, such as the 9/11 attacks. I would argue that this is one of the most prophesied events in human history... Again, if you trawl through the blog, you'll find an abundance of prophecies from various sources all converging upon this same event. If you have the time, I would like to hear more on your dream.

Just came across this blog, I have been pouring over the pages for almost two hours, thank you so much for the time you have put into sharing all of this. I have a question though, what bout all the prophecies about fire falling from the sky and it's possible connection to meteors/asteroids and/or nuclear weapons? Thanks!

I think the various prophecies of the "fire falling from the sky" is linked to nuclear warfare at the battle of Armageddon - the last great war to befall humanity. According to various biblical prophecies, this war is connected to an invasion of Israel - which I believe would be a very real possibility without the political backing of the Israeli state by its major ally (which would be the case if America were destoyed economically by the devastating consequences of this potential mega-tsunami). I go into this in some detail in the book, and in the post at the below link:

I had an interesting thing happen to me, and thought I would pass it along to you.Monday Oct.1,2007 at about 2:15 a.m. I was asleep, minding my own business and having a wonderful dream. I was startled to hear a voice in my ear. This voice quietly said, "There has been a shift, evil has gained a foot hold." I was slightly startled, I said "what?" Again the voice said in a slightly louder voice and little more insistent, "There has been a shift, evil has gained a foot hold." Well my eyes flew open this time. I looked up at the clock to note the time. I laid quietly trying to sort this out and see if there was more to the message. I then began having a vision. It seemed as though I was flying in an airplane. We seemed to be flying low as I could make out landmarks etc. looking out the window. I asked where we were going. This voice (I never saw anyone on the plane with me, just sensed a presence) said, "The East Coast." All was silent for a space of time, all of a sudden it seemed as though the terrain was replaced by a large map of the United States. I looked at this and could clearly see the whole east coast. I then looked toward the Atlantic Ocean. Coming over the ocean was a wall of fire.The only way I can describe this fire is on the 4th of July we have some ground fireworks I think they call the waterfall. Like the fireworks, this wall of fire had a beginning and end, a top and bottom. This wall of fire was tall, it had sparklers shooting out from inside it. It actually was very pretty. I was shown the area this wall of fire would hit. I sensed this was not really good. I remember groaning and asked, "Oh Lord, is this from your hand?"The only thing I heard was Pray, Pray, Pray. That's it three prays, each one more emphasized than the last. I got up in the morning and looked at a map of the United States. I needed to see the states where this wall of fire was heading. (I am not too good with the east coast states, I am a whiz on the western states!!) Anyhow, the best I could determine the line of fire began around the Boston area, or just above it, and ended about the Virginia/North Carolina line. I remember noting that the fire did not take in any part of Maine.

Now I don't know, but if this volcanic mountain fell into the ocean while erupting, would the hot magma stay hot and appear as fire coming toward shore?

I have had the "honor" (?) of knowing some things before they happen...I never know the time lines though. I knew for about four weeks before the L.A. riots that they were coming. (The message was pray for Los Angles, for you shall see rioting in the streets.) I knew about the terrorist attack for nearly four years before it happened. I knew that something awful was going to happen, that it involved airplanes, and that after it happened just the sound of an airplane would strike fear into some peoples hearts. Never in my wildest dreams did I think anyone would use planes for bombs!!! I thought "they" might drop some, but never did it dawn on me they would do what they did!

Do with this locution-vision- what you will, it does of course, need discernment.MD

I think these are all great ideas but I think that what the article is depicting is Holly Wood. This was the first thing to come to mind for me because people go there seeking fame and fortune with no love for God. People sell there souls to get what they want and they think it's fake so they do what the devil tells them. It's not hard to see that these people are tricking society through T.V. And Music to drag as many souls as possible to hell with Satan. Thus making this place evil. They could control large amounts of people and you couldn't even know it. And I don't mean mind control like you see on batman or something but rather just enough bad and sinful things are put around you so that you don't make it to heaven. This place is powerful and has control of many things and people. That would explain the "fiery" part of this article. If you break away from there ways and turn to God then they will be powerless.

About Me

As part of research for my book Unveiling the Apocalypse: Prophecy in Catholic Tradition, I studied the Hebrew, Greek and Aramaic languages before graduating in 2006 with First Class honours. My book is the product of around ten years of original research. This blog is intended as a means of supplementing the material presented in the book by providing relevant up-to-date information.